To think buying furniture brand new is a waste of money?

[maklenehan]

Sure some items are a lot better new than used, like sofas or mattresses.

But I don’t understand why people spend so much money on brand new furniture, when in 6 months time it’ll be worth about half what paid.

I went to a furniture shop recently and saw some MDF furniture that might last 10 years before looking scruffy/dated for over £1000 for a chest of drawers (West elm). When you can get a solid oak piece that looks timeless for £500. Looks a lot more solid and won’t break easily.

I also get that modern house owners want modern furniture, but there’s loaaads of 1960s furniture available cheap that is solid Teak, and the equivalent modern copies are vastly more expensive and worse quality.

I have a mixture...
My old ektorp ikea sofa is 20 years old....we got a new loose cover for £95 and it’s as good as new....latest bedroom furniture for spare room is ikea but in lounge and family room I have g plan, ercol and Nathan....all picked up from eBay.... I love 60s/70s elm.... the grain is beautiful...
that was in the days before Dutch elm disease... we will never see it again unfortunately in new furniture

Unless the second hand furniture was sin pieces absolutely no way I could get it round the right turns upstairs.

I'm happy to buy ikea brand new ofs pretty cheap and so far in still new condition after 8yrs. I actually took down a pax wardrobe to move it to another room, carefully taking it apart. Unfortunately I made a lazy mistake when putting it together and if broke. Lucky replacing the wardrobe frame was only £60. If I had paid hundreds its hurt my pocket more.

Also with ikea so easy to change things like doors, internal storage/shelving etc. It's an affordable way of updating and they have marching sets not something you often find with second hand furniture

Honestly I couldn't care less about the re-sellable value of my furniture. Not everything needs to hold a return on investement potential.

Second hand furniture (like mid century) can be extremely expensive.

I've got a mix of new, second hand and home made.
My shelves are brand new, it's a designer's piece, that I can take with me when I leave. This model has been a design staple for 60 years, it's not the kind of stuff that can get outdated anytime soon.
I also bought a brand new armchair, because I fell in love with the design. Didn't want anything else.
I'm considering another side table, I'm looking at new designers on the scene. I also look at second hand, but I like the idea of contributing to emerging designers.
And the chase is so exciting. I may find perfect second hand, but I keep my options open.

This said, as a design fan, I'm also perfectly aware that furniture doesn't make everything in a place.

A friend of mine has a fantastic flat, its all ikea and it looks fab, she used the furniture as a generic canvas and put a lot of attention into lighting sources, wall decor, accessories, and the flat itself has a lot of character with exposed brick, metal beams etc...

@MirandaMarple

Because time is valuable. Also the idea that things were well made only in olden days is a false analogy. Finally, furniture is as much about aesthetics as it is about functionality and durability. No one would choose to buy ugly furniture just because it was old and supposedly of good quality. For a lot of items of furniture it makes sense to to buy new, but not particularly expensive or durable because you may want to replace it to update the look of a room.

@sst1234 I certainty do not invest in furniture to replace it quickly, I'd rather sacrifice my time than my money.

Certainly was a waste of money for me. Bought new sideboard. Three weeks later, the dog peed on it.

ExH wrecked the last new sofa I bought. Instead of buying new again I ditched him :D Now I have an old family sofa and it's lasting well

It dose depend on the style you’re going for. My house is modern farmhouse and so its easy to buy second hand, particularly since you can paint things or strip them to tie them in together. Loads of my furniture is second hand (not sofas or mattresses). If my look was ultra modern it would be more difficult to find suitable stuff.

I agree that the 60s teak us now ultra trendy. In the place I live there’s a whole shop dedicated to it at bonkers prices.

eBay delivery services are good and you can get most things shipped to you very cheaply.

I get all sorts but most of the most lovely antique pieces were free from free cycle!

A lot of modern furniture is designed for smaller rooms in modern homes. Buying second hand can be rewarding, upcycling can be fun. But it has to fill the space.

When we downsized a lot of stuff had to go. We did buy some furniture off our sellers because it worked in the room.

Most people don't go on to sell their furniture after 6 months though so why would they care if it depreciates?

Most of the things in my bedroom for example, drawers, wardrobe, bedside tables and so on, I've had for years.

@justasking111

A lot of modern furniture is designed for smaller rooms in modern homes. Buying second hand can be rewarding, upcycling can be fun. But it has to fill the space.

When we downsized a lot of stuff had to go. We did buy some furniture off our sellers because it worked in the room.

Interesting you say that. I've had to buy older furniture to fit small spaces as my sense is that new furniture is often oversized - especially armchairs.

But I don’t understand why people spend so much money on brand new furniture, when in 6 months time it’ll be worth about half what paid.

who cares, I don't buy furniture to last 6 months. I have neither the time nor the will to change everything twice a year.

I don't want 60s furniture either. I have some old family stuff which has sentimental value and might even be worth a bit, but I am not selling.
I have Ikea stuff which is great but really doesn't handle dismantling and moving so well.

I have furniture that I like the look of in various shops or catalogues, just ordered and got it delivered.

My time is worth more than saving a few quid because I buy something on ebay or second hand place - without guarantee that it will be as described, in good conditions etc.

Not something I’ve thought a lot about. Most of what I’ve wanted I only saw available to buy as new. We “set up home” 17 years ago and aside from changing the mattress and sofa, we haven’t got rid of any furniture we have bought over the years. We have got some things as hand me downs from family and from the people we bought our house from

I bought all my furniture from IKEA yore because I had nowhere else to store my dvds manuscripts.

Buying anything except shelter, food and basic clothing could be called a waste of money, I don’t want second hand furniture, I want to be able to choose exactly what stuff I want, in the style I want, in perfect condition, what’s wrong with that?

Yabu in that we bought our furniture to use until it falls apart, it has never occurred to me to consider resale value of furniture.
But yanbu that £1000 is too much to spend on a piece of furniture.

Twenty years ago when MCM furniture was just beginning to make a comeback I bought this design of an early 50s G plan (E Gomme) sideboard on ebay for £150. I still love it and it is far bigger and more solidly made than most new sideboards, particularly what people were asking for it then, but even now you'd struggle to get the quality for the price.

Most of the reasons people have for not looking at vintage are bullshit, there are loads of websites selling antique and vintage pieces where you can search for exactly your requirements and find loads of alternatives in different styles and in different price brackets. And they do delivery. Just look at the search option on vinterior above. It's so much easier than it was years ago when the options were the local auction house (got a fantastic chest of drawers there) or ebay. And somuch better for the environment.

In the last year I've bought reupholstered chairs for less than they would cost new from IKEA, some desks, a restored rosewood sideboard (rosewood is now protected so you can't get new rosewood furniture) and just bought an incredibly 60s leather sofa by a famous designer. I don't want a house with wall to wall Dunelm, I want a house with history and character and pieces my children can inherit. Quality second hand is no longer the cheap option (although that middle sideboard above is lovely) but we have to stop buying poor quality things that are made by exploited poor people in Asia if we want a world our children can live in.

@SarahAndQuack you are totally right about armchairs, they are all massive nowadays as are sofas - some of them are almost a metre deep! It’s a nightmare trying to find something to fit in our fairly narrow living room without overwhelming it.

No I don’t agree with you, buying furniture second hand is a pain unless you drive having to arrange vans etc and they are pretty expensive too so would rather buy new

I love antique furniture. I have inherited bits and collected for years. I've also bought and sold. I especially like oak country furniture, solid mahogany George I and William and Mary walnut furniture. It loses its value or gains according to fashion. Couldn't give a stuff if I'm keeping it. I've made a bit selling stuff on, but its usually been a case of being in right place at the right time. I bought an oak coffer circa 1650 for £10 and all it required is a good polish but I'm keeping it so its resale value is irrelevant. Antique furniture doesn't generally increase in value unless its really exceptional quality, a good example of its kind, in original condition and not been over restored or cleaned up too much. But, who buys furniture as an investment? not many people, not even me. Ultimately it has to be useful and you have to like it.

The argument about small houses doesn't necessarily stack up though. A lot of georgian furniture was designed to be multi purpose, to fold down, and to be pushed back to the walls. There was quite a lot of ingenuity and clever design.

YANBU

[quote PattyPan]@SarahAndQuack you are totally right about armchairs, they are all massive nowadays as are sofas - some of them are almost a metre deep! It’s a nightmare trying to find something to fit in our fairly narrow living room without overwhelming it.[/quote]
We just notice because we're two women - I'm 5'5 and DP is 5'7, so we don't want those massive, overstuffed chairs designed for a hefty 6'4 man! I notice if you pay a massive amount new, furniture gets smaller again - you can buy what look like very beautiful, dainty armchairs for upwards of a grand, but we don't have the budget. I do wonder if it's because soft woods like pine and cheaper cushions just take more space?

That sideboard is beautiful @JaninaDuszejko. And what a great investment it’s turned out to be.

Well op, I personally don’t understand why anyone would buy furniture anywhere other than IKEA. But each to their own. IKEA also do a good job of “timeless”. The Billy bookcase was first made in the 70s. They still sell them today, I have them in 3 different rooms.

IKEA give exact measurements for their stuff and most of us are very pushed for space so buying something 2nd hand is most likely going to be less space efficient. Unless it’s 2nd hand IKEA of course!